Housing for an electrical terminal

ABSTRACT

An insulating molded synthetic plastic housing for an electrical terminal, the housing being of generally tubular shape and open at both ends. The housing is deformed during entry of the terminal and subsequently returns to its original shape to lock the terminal in position.

United. States Patent [is] 3,641,477 Plana 1 Feb. 8, 1972 [$4] HOUSINGFOR AN ELECTRICAL 3,430,185 2/1969 4 Sitzler etal ..339/59 M TERMINAL3,441,661 4/1969 Brummans.... ...174/ 138 3,517,370 6 1970 P .339 59 R72] Inventor: Roberto am, Barcelona, Spain I omst I [73] Assign? AMP WMHarrisburg Pa FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS a D 92,979 12/1963 France....339/2l7 S [22] 1,557,978 1/1969 France ..339/256 SP [21] Appl. No.:14,139

7 Primary Examiner-Marvin A. Champion Assistant Examiner-Robert A. Hafer""4!" Attorney-Curtis, Mania and Safford, William J. Keating,Wi1- Mar.22, 1969 Spain ..146,825 li m Hin n. r ri W- n'ng, John p Adrian i LaRueand Jay L. Seitchik [52] US. CL ..339/59 R, 339/213 T, 339/217 S [51].1101! 11/02, H011 9/08 [57] ABSTRACT [58] HddoISa-nh ..339/59, 65,217,323193i22r6SSl; Aninsulafins molded synthetic plastic housing for anelectm cal terminal, the housing being of generally tubular shape andopen at both ends. The housing is deformed during entry of [56] Rd CMthe terminal and subsequently returns to its original shape to UNITEDSTATES PATENTS lock the terminal in position.

3,097,906 7/1963 Shannon "339/253 5 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures I w\ \w if I I j m' I I I /L j C 20 HOUSING FOR AN ELECTRICAL TERMINAL Thisinvention relates to an electrically insulating molded syntheticplastics housing for an electrical terminal for mating with anelectrical tab.

It is desirable that such a housing should be capable of accommodatingterminals having somewhat difierent dimensions and that the tolerancespermissible in molding the housing should not be uneconomically close.

According to the invention, an electrically insulating molded syntheticplastics housing for an electrical terminal for mating with anelectrical tab, comprises a first and a second pair of walls defining atubular body which is open at both ends, a first stop extending inwardlyof the housing from one end of one wall of the first pair of walls, anda detent extending inwardly from the other wall of the first pair ofwalls at a posi tion intermediate the ends of the housing, the stop andthe detent cooperating to secure in the housing, the electrical terminalwhen inserted into the housing from the end of the housing opposite tothat at which the stop is disposed, the housing being provided withadditional stops at the same end of the housing as the first stop andwhich extend inwardly of the housing, the additional stops beingdisposed one on either side of the detent to prevent the tab from beinginserted into the housing so as to lie between the terminal and theother wall of the first pair, a solid internal rib extending from thedetent towards the end of the housing at which the stop is disposed, toengage in a recess defined by the terminal to ensure that the terminalcan be inserted into the housing in only one orientation with respect tothe housing.

By virtue of the terminal locating action of the rib and the fact thatthe additional stops improve the retention of the terminal in thehousing, the terminal need not fit snugly in the housing. Also, in viewof the presence of the additional stops, the rib need not extend up tothat end of the housing at which the stops are disposed, since it isunnecessary to use the rib for preventing the tab from being insertedinto the housing so as to lie between the terminal and the other wall ofthe first pair.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference will now be madeby way of example to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an enlarged perspective view of a housing for an electricalterminal for mating with an electrical tab which is shown in fragmentaryform;

FIG. 2 is a view of one end of the molded synthetic plastic housing forthe terminal;

FIG. 3 is a view of the other end of the housing of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the lines 4- 4 of FIG.3;

FIG. '4A is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4 but showing a terminal inthe housing;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the lines 5- 5 of FIG.3; and

FIG. 6 is a similar view to that of FIG. 2, but showing the terminal inthe housing.

As shown in FIG. 1, the terminal, which is generally,

referenced 1, comprises a receptacle portion 2, a first ferrule' portion3 crimped about the electrically conductive core 4 of an insulated wire5 and a second ferrule portion 6 crimped about the insulation of thewire 5. The receptacle portion 2 has a base 7 from which extends thestub 7a of a metal slug by which the terminal 1 was joined to a furtherand similar terminal to form part of a strip of terminals. Sidewalls 8extending from opposite sides of the base 7 are inwardly rolled so thattheir free ends 9 are directed towards the base 7. A tab 10 is mateablewith the terminal 1. On mating, the tab enters the receptacle portion 2between the base 7 and the free ends of the sidewalls 8.

The housing, which is generally referenced 11, and which is preferablymade of polypropylene, comprises a first pair of walls 12a, l2bjoined bya second pair of walls 13 to form a substantially rectangular sectiontubular body which is open at both ends. The walls 12a, 12b and 13 areof equal thickness, the walls 12a and 12b being broader than the walls13. Interiorly of the body a solid rib 14 of wedge-shaped cross sectionextends longitudinally of the body substantially centrally of the wall12a, the rib 14 extending away from one end 15 of the body andoverlapping a wedge-shaped detent 16 which, as shown in FIG. 5, isspaced from the walls 13. A first stop 18 formed as a rudimentary wallextends between the walls 13 at the end 15 of the housing and has in itsedge, a recess 17 which is slightly wider than the stub 70 of theterminal ll Two spaced-parallel ribs 19 (FIGS. 3 and 4) extend from thestop 18 up to the other open end 20 of the body. The wall 12a of thehousing has two additional stops 21, one on each side of the rib 14, atthe end 15 of the body. The wall 12a also has a raised or steppedportion 22, so that the orientation of the housing can be determined byfeel.

The terminal 1 is inserted into the housing 11, with the receptacleportion 2 leading; through the open end 20 of the housing and beingguided by the ribs 14 and 19 until the leading end of the receptacleportion 2 engages the stops 18 and 21. During the insertion of thetemiinal l, the crests of the sidewalls 8 engage the detent 16 so thatthe walls 12a and [2b are flexed outwardly of the housing 11. As theterminal 1 is inserted fully home into the housing 11, the detent 16 isdisengaged by the sidewalls 8 so that the walls 12a and 12b of thehousing snap back into their original positions so that the terminal lis restrained from axial movement with respect to the housing 11 betweenthe stops l8 and 21 and the detent 16, the stub 7a of the portion 2 ofthe terminal 1 engaging in the stop 18, as shown in FIG. 6.

It will be apparent from FIG. 6, that by virtue of the stops 21 and therib 14, the tab 10 can only be inserted into the housing so as to matecorrectly with the receptacle portion 2. Also, the stops 21 ensure theretention of the terminal 1 in the housing.

What is claimed is:

1. An electrically insulating molded synthetic plastics housing for anelectrical temlinal for mating with an electrical tab, the housingcomprising a first and a second pair of walls defining a tubular bodywhich is open at both ends, a first stop extending inwardly of thehousing from one end of one wall of the first pair of walls, and adetent extending inwardly from the other wall of the first pair of wallsat a position intermediate the ends of the housing, the stop and thedetent cooperating to secure in the housing, the electrical terminalwhen inserted into the housing from the end of the housing opposite tothat at which the stop is disposed, the housing being provided withadditional stops at the same end of the housing as the first stop andwhich extend inwardly of the housing, the additional stops beingdisposed one on either side of the detent to prevent the tab from beinginserted into the housing so as to lie between the terminal and theother wall of the first pair, a solid internal rib extending from thedetent towards the end of the housing at which the stop is disposed toengage in a recess defined by the terminal to ensure that the terminalcan be inserted into the housing in only one orientation with respect tothe housing, the rib being formed with a step located nearer the detentthan the end of the housing at which the stop is disposed so that themajor portion of the rib is of decreased height relative to the portionof the rib adjacent the detent.

2. A housing according to claim 1, in which the first stop is formed asa rudimentary wall extending from one wall of the second pair to theother, the end of the wall having a central recess for receiving aprojection on the terminal.

3. A housing according to claim 1 in which the detent is spaced from theedges of the wall of the housing from which the detent extends, so thatthis wall is flexed outwardly of the housing as a result of the detentbeing engaged by the terminal as the terminal is inserted into thehousing.

4. A housing according to claim 1 in which the other wall of the firstpair is exteriorly stepped.

5. An electrically insulating, molded synthetic plastics, elongatehousing for an electrical tenninal for mating with an electrical tab,the housing comprises a first pair of walls and a second pair ofparallel walls defining a tubular body whichis open at both ends, thewalls being of equal thickness and the walls of the first pair being ofsubstantially greater width than the walls of the second pair, a firststop extending inwardly of the housing from one end of one wall of thefirst pair of walls and a wedge-shaped detent rigidly secured to theother wall of the first pair at a position intennediate the ends of thehousing serted into the housing so as to lie between the terminal andthe other wall of the first pair, a solid internal rib fonned integzallywith the detent extending midway between the walls of the second pairfrom the detent towards the end of the housing at which the stops aredisposed, to engage in a central recess defined by the terminal toensure that the tem'linal can be inserted into the housing with only oneorientation with respect to the housing, the rib being formed with astep located nearer the detent than the end of the housing at which thestops are disposed so that the major portion of the rib is of decreasedheight relative to the portion of the rib adjacent the detent.

1. An electrically insulating molded synthetic plastics housing for anelectrical terminal for mating with an electrical tab, the housingcomprising a first and a second pair of walls defining a tubular bodywhich is open at both ends, a first stop extending inwardly of thehousing from one end of one wall of the first pair of walls, and adetent extending inwardly from the other wall of the first pair of wallsat a position intermediate the ends of the housing, the stop and thedetent cooperating to secure in the housing, the electrical terminalwhen inserted into the housing from the end of the housing opposite tothat at which the stop is disposed, the housing being provided withadditional stops at the same end of the housing as the first stop andwhich extend inwardly of the housing, the additional stops beingdisposed one on eiTher side of the detent to prevent the tab from beinginserted into the housing so as to lie between the terminal and theother wall of the first pair, a solid internal rib extending from thedetent towards the end of the housing at which the stop is disposed toengage in a recess defined by the terminal to ensure that the terminalcan be inserted into the housing in only one orientation with respect tothe housing, the rib being formed with a step located nearer the detentthan the end of the housing at which the stop is disposed so that themajor portion of the rib is of decreased height relative to the portionof the rib adjacent the detent.
 2. A housing according to claim 1, inwhich the first stop is formed as a rudimentary wall extending from onewall of the second pair to the other, the end of the wall having acentral recess for receiving a projection on the terminal.
 3. A housingaccording to claim 1 in which the detent is spaced from the edges of thewall of the housing from which the detent extends, so that this wall isflexed outwardly of the housing as a result of the detent being engagedby the terminal as the terminal is inserted into the housing.
 4. Ahousing according to claim 1 in which the other wall of the first pairis exteriorly stepped.
 5. An electrically insulating, molded syntheticplastics, elongate housing for an electrical terminal for mating with anelectrical tab, the housing comprises a first pair of walls and a secondpair of parallel walls defining a tubular body which is open at bothends, the walls being of equal thickness and the walls of the first pairbeing of substantially greater width than the walls of the second pair,a first stop extending inwardly of the housing from one end of one wallof the first pair of walls and a wedge-shaped detent rigidly secured tothe other wall of the first pair at a position intermediate the ends ofthe housing extending inwardly from the other wall of the first pair,the stop and the detent cooperating to secure in the housing theelectrical terminal when inserted into the housing from the end of thehousing opposite to that at which the stop is disposed, the housinghaving a pair of additional stops at the same end of the housing as thefirst stop and which extend inwardly of the housing, the additionalstops being disposed one on either side of the detent to prevent the tabfrom being inserted into the housing so as to lie between the terminaland the other wall of the first pair, a solid internal rib formedintegrally with the detent extending midway between the walls of thesecond pair from the detent towards the end of the housing at which thestops are disposed, to engage in a central recess defined by theterminal to ensure that the terminal can be inserted into the housingwith only one orientation with respect to the housing, the rib beingformed with a step located nearer the detent than the end of the housingat which the stops are disposed so that the major portion of the rib isof decreased height relative to the portion of the rib adjacent thedetent.